Friday, 23 June 2017

Arsenal hopeful of landing Lyon’s Alexandre Lacazette with £44m bid

Arsenal are hopeful of securing the highly rated France striker Alexandre Lacazette after lodging a club record bid worth £44m, a fee likely to prove acceptable to Lyon and spark a flurry of knock-on movement in the transfer market.

A number of teams had registered an interest in Lacazette, who has 11 caps and is contracted to Lyon until 2019 after graduating through their exceptional academy system.

The player had initially expressed a desire to join Atlético Madrid, having deemed the time right to further his career by departing Ligue 1, but the Spanish club’s transfer ban, which stands until January 2018, has complicated their pursuit and allowed Arsenal to steal a march on the 26-year-old’s other suitors.